On Tuesday we had a look at the surprisingly robust implementation of Tory manifesto promises on onshore windfarm development - but what of the pro-shale policy ? Towards the tail-end of the comments, someone mentioned shale fleetingly; but Lancashire County Council seems not to have got the message.
When we discussed this last year I opined that the protest-tide may have turned, in the face of new-found determination on the pro-shale side - see, for example, this publicity stunt: 'students for shale' ! The anti-shale independent beat the LibDems and Geens in Fylde at the election, but still came only fourth. Going into the election, Labour had a cautious and rather qualified but nonetheless pro-shale policy, but some of the leadership candidates clearly intend to backslide to a more comfortable anti-everything position. Evidently the daft old left has decided to get out onto the streets again, so a revived anti-shale movement may be afoot.
What larks. I don't detect the newly emboldened Cameron has any time for faffing around on settled policy issues, nor any truck with the swampy brigade, but the Country Squire set still has a bit of influence with him. Osborne is just plain pro, and Lancashire is presumably part of his Northern Powerhouse. Amber Rudd is said to be taking the summer off to devise a new energy policy. Let's see what she comes back with after the hols.
ND
4 comments:
"I don't detect the newly emboldened Cameron.."
There is no "i" in Came-iron.
Backboneless to the last
My opinion is that the Roseacre decision was a bone being thrown to the fracktivists and/or the council. It certainly wasn't thrown out because of a misguided notion of harm to the environment or residents, but because of an unacceptable increase in HGV traffic (apparently all those milk tankers and livestock transporters around the Fylde are just fine, though).
The dynamics of the last paragraph seem to be in play - Rudd's choice of PPS is interesting.
Newly emboldened Cameron. Y-e-e-e-s-s-s-s.
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